Table of contents

2.1.2. Findings from self-assessment survey

The self-assessment survey included requests for information on four different but related questions that provide insight into visibility of adaptation across Europe. All of these questions included multiple choice options, with one (Q3) requesting that respondents identify from a list of options the three that they consider the most important. The self-assessment survey also included a number of open-ended questions asking for examples or more details and, although not directly related to visibility, some of the responses included information relative to visibility and have been drawn on in this analysis. The following table presents the four questions specifically referenced and indicates the number of countries providing a response.

Question from self-assessment survey
(including the question number)
Number of countries having answered this question (including % on total number)
In my country, in the past five years, the level of public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased (Q1) 30/30 (100 %)
In my country, the need for climate change adaptation has reached the national political agenda (Q2) 30/30 (100%)
In my country, the following aspects have triggered adaptation (Q3) 29/30 (96.7%)
In my country, the willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation actions at national level is (Q4) 30/30 (100%)
In my country, the following barriers for adaptation have been identified (Q 11) 29/30 (96.7%)
In what stage of the adaptation policy process is your country in? (Q12) 30/30 (100%)

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Countries reported an increasing public awareness of the need for adaptation and that adaptation has reached the national political agenda

The responses suggest that the level of public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased during the past five years (20 agree or strongly agree with nine providing a neutral response (i.e. neither agree nor disagree)) and that adaptation has reached the national political agenda (23 agree or strongly agree) with only one strongly disagreeing.

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Triggers for adaptation identified included those that would increase the awareness of need for adaptation publicly and politically

Each country was requested to select from a provided list what they believed were the three most important triggers for action on adaptation (note that five countries identified four triggers). As illustrated in Figure 2.1, common triggers for action on adaptation identified were extreme weather events (28 of 30), development of EU policies (19 of 30), estimates of current and future damage costs (17of 30) and pertinent results from scientific research (14 of 30).

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Figure 2.1 Responses selected as having triggered adaptation. Countries were asked to select three from a list of 10 triggers, with five countries identifying four triggers (n=30 responding countries)

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Exploring these responses further, it is useful to consider the relationships between public awareness or whether adaptation has reached the political agenda and the reported triggers for action on adaptation. In terms of the triggers, for those countries agreeing or strongly agreeing (20 of 30) that the level of public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased:

  • More of these countries (ten of 14) identified scientific research and forerunner sectors (i.e. sectors taking a lead on adaptation (four of five) than those that neither agreed nor disagreed (i.e. responded neutrally) with the statement that public awareness had increased.

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For those countries that strongly agreed or agreed that adaptation has reached the national political agenda (24 of 30), scientific research was identified as a trigger for adaptation by 12 such countries compared to two that responded neutrally or that they strongly disagreed.

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There is a willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation actions at the national level

As synthesised in Table 2.1, eleven countries reported a high (out of 30) or very high (two) willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation actions at the national level. 14 countries reported that such willingness within their countries could be ranked medium, and three reported a low ranking.

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The role of awareness of the need for adaptation in determining the willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level can be explored by examining the responses to this question and the responses to two other questions within the survey. The first is exploring the responses to this question and those to the whether the public awareness of adaptation as a response has increased (Table 2.1). Ten of the 13 countries that ranked willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level as high or very high also responded that public awareness as a response had increased (compared with three of 13 that responded that they neither agreed nor disagreed that that public awareness had increased). Similarly, those countries that ranked willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level as medium (14 countries) more (nine countries) agreed with the statement that public awareness of adaptation as a response has increased than neither agreed or disagreed with this statement (five countries).

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Table 2.1. Reported willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level, and response to whether public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response has increased (n=29)

Willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level Public awareness of adaptation as a response has increased
Agree (17) / Strongly Agree (2)* Neutral  (9)
Low willingness (3 countries)* Slovenia Czech Republic
Medium willingness (14 countries) Belgium, Finland, Germany, Greece, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden Estonia, Hungary, Ireland, Poland, Latvia
High (11 countries) / very high willingness (2 countries) Austria, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Italy, Malta, Norway, Spain, Turkey, UK Bulgaria, The Netherlands, Switzerland

* One country’s responses are not included in this table as Liechtenstein reported ‘not known’ as response to whether public awareness of adaptation has increased.

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The second exploration is with respect to responses to whether the need for climate change adaptation has reached the national political agenda (Table 2.2). All countries (13) that responded that willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level is high or very high also responded that the need for climate change adaptation has reached the national political agenda.  Similarly, those countries that responded that ranked willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level as medium (14 countries) more (ten countries) agreed with the statement that the need for climate change adaptation has reached the national political agenda than neither agreed or disagreed with this statement (four countries).

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These responses, particularly from those countries responding that they neither disagree nor agreed with the statements that the public awareness of adaptation as a response has increased or that the need for climate change adaptation has reached the national political agenda and their implications for the role of awareness of the need for adaptation (and other drivers) in willingness to act at the national level requires further exploration.

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Table 2.2. Reported willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level and the reported agreement that the need for adaptation reached the national political agenda (n=29)

Willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level The need for climate change adaptation has reached the national political agenda*
Agree (20) / Strongly Agree (3)* Neutral (5)
Low (3)* Slovenia Czech Republic
Medium (14) Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Greece
High (11) / Very High (2) Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Italy, Malta, Norway, The Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, UK

* Liechtenstein strongly disagreed that adaptation had reached the national political agenda and reported a low willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level

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Selected barriers to adaptation are related to the lack of financial and human capacity, lack of political will and uncertainties

Countries were asked to select the three most important barriers to adaptation from a list of potential barriers.  The three most commonly reported barriers selected were the lack of financial/human resources (selected 25 times), followed by uncertainties and unclear responsibilities (selected 12 times each) and the lack of political commitment/will (selected 10 times) (cf. Figure 2.2).

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Figure 2.2. Selected barrier to adaptation

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It is worth noting that barriers related to insufficient capacity (lack of financial/human capacity; limited capacity in the policy, practitioner and/or research communities; and lack of knowledge exchange) was selected by 28 of 30 countries. This can be compared with those barriers related to the lack of information or knowledge (selected by 16 of 30 countries) – uncertainties as a barrier was selected 12 times, lack of data (such as socio-economic, climate and other physical data) was selected seven times, lack of knowledge exchange selected three times and lack of knowledge generation selected two times. Dealing with these latter barriers may enhance capacity or increase political commitment/will, but the responses suggest that although lack of information and knowledge are barriers to adaptation, barriers related to capacity and political commitment/will are considered more important.

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Reported stage in the adaptation policy process does appear to be directly related to the awareness of the need for adaptation

In response to the question asking countries to identify what stage of the adaptation policy process they were in (Figure 2.3), two of 30 countries indicated that their adaptation policy process had not started, one that they were in the agenda setting stage, eleven that they were in the formulation stage, seven that they were in the decision stage, five that they were in the implementation stage and four that they were in the monitoring and evaluation stage.

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Figure 2.3. Illustrative schematic overview of adaptation policy progress as reported by European countries

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Exploring the above responses further, it is useful to consider the responses to whether public awareness of the need for adaptation has increased and to whether adaptation has reached the national political agenda with the reported stage in the adaptation policy process.

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As illustrated in Figure 2.4, those countries agreeing or strongly agreeing (20 of 29) that the level of public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased, are also the countries that identified themselves as being at the decision (five of seven), implementation (five of six) and monitoring and evaluation (four of four) stages of the adaptation policy process. Although public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased over the past five years in Greece, they reported that their adaptation policy process had not yet started.

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For those nine countries responding that they neither agreed nor disagreed that the level of public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased (i.e. neutral response),only one identified themselves as being at the implementation stage and none identified themselves as being at the monitoring and evaluation stage.

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Figure 2.4. Reported stage in the adaptation policy process, and response indicating whether public awareness of the need for adaptation as a response to climate change has increased (n=29)

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Further observations related to the importance of factors related to awareness of the need for adaptation and the reported stage in the adaptation process can be made based on the responses to the two related questions (see Figure 2.5):

  • Those countries that reported a low willingness to develop policies or take adaptation action at the national level (Slovenia, Czech Republic and Liechtenstein) all reported that they were at the formulation stage of the adaptation process. It is also interesting to note that these same countries identified as triggers for adaptation extreme weather events and damage costs, and either EU policies (two of these three) or adaptation in neighboring countries.
  • Of those 12 countries that reported high or very high willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level, six of those reported that they were at the implementation stage and two of the four reporting that they were at the monitoring and evaluation stage in the adaptation policy process.

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Figure 2.5. Reported willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the  national level, and the reported stage in the adaptation policy process (n=30)*

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*One country (Finland) reported a medium willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action and being at the M&E stage of the adaptation policy process (undertaking evaluation, but not monitoring or reporting)

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Together, these observations suggest that willingness to develop policies and to take adaptation action at the national level is an important factor in determining the stage in the adaptation policy process, but also suggest that there are other determinants.

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Adaptation has reached the political agenda through introduction of legislation and national adaptation strategies

Responses to some of the open-ended questions within the self-assessment survey can provide further insight into the awareness of the need for adaptation in European countries. For example, 30 countries responded to the question regarding planned next steps, and of these, 21 countries reported next steps with respect to legislation to support adaptation and their responses provide some insight into the awareness of the need for adaptation in the political agenda:

  • Seven of these 21 countries reported that legislation was being planned with two additional countries reporting that legislation already existed;
  • Five of these 21 countries indicated that a national adaptation strategy was planned or under development; 
  • Six of these 21 countries reported that legislation to support adaptation was being integrated into sectoral legislation to support mainstreaming;
  • Three of these 21 countries indicated that legislation was not yet being considered.
  • In addition, the awareness of the need for adaptation in the context of the political agenda is also apparent from the reported next steps relative to updating of strategy /plan.
  • 16 of the 21 countries reporting next steps related to updating of their national adaptation strategy/plan indicated planned or continuous process of updating of their strategies/plans and of these 15, five countries indicated that updates were required regularly.

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For example, in Germany a progress report on the German adaptation strategy and the Action Plan will be prepared within the coming legislative period. In Ireland, the adaptation actions will be informed by the outcomes of the phase 1 (focused on increasing understanding of national impacts and vulnerabilities) and will build on the progress made in terms of adaptation awareness and integration, and increased experience with dealing with adaptation issues.

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